Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 178

April 22, 19974 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 22, 1997, 8:45 AM CDT for 4 states. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 22, 1997, 8:45 AM CDT (13:45 UTC)
Expired
Apr 22, 1997, 3:00 PM CDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 56 counties

Sumter County, AL, Ashley County, AR, Chicot County, AR, Caldwell Parish, LA, Catahoula Parish, LA, Concordia Parish, LA, East Carroll Parish, LA, Franklin Parish, LA, LaSalle Parish, LA, Madison Parish, LA, Morehouse Parish, LA, Ouachita Parish, LA, Richland Parish, LA, Tensas Parish, LA, West Carroll Parish, LA, Adams County, MS, Amite County, MS, Claiborne County, MS, Clarke County, MS, Copiah County, MS, Covington County, MS, Forrest County, MS, Franklin County, MS, George County, MS, Greene County, MS, Hinds County, MS, Humphreys County, MS, Issaquena County, MS, Jasper County, MS, Jefferson County, MS, Jefferson Davis County, MS, Jones County, MS, Kemper County, MS, Lamar County, MS, Lauderdale County, MS, Lawrence County, MS, Leake County, MS, Lincoln County, MS, Madison County, MS, Marion County, MS, Neshoba County, MS, Newton County, MS, Pearl River County, MS, Perry County, MS, Pike County, MS, Rankin County, MS, Scott County, MS, Sharkey County, MS, Simpson County, MS, Smith County, MS, Stone County, MS, Walthall County, MS, Warren County, MS, Wayne County, MS, Wilkinson County, MS, Yazoo County, MS

Warnings issued inside it

24 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 22, 9:10 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMorehouse50 min
Apr 22, 9:17 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVOuachita58 min
Apr 22, 9:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVCaldwell60 min
Apr 22, 9:38 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANRichland52 min
Apr 22, 9:55 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANAshley35 min
Apr 22, 10:00 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWest Carroll45 min
Apr 22, 10:02 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANFranklin43 min
Apr 22, 10:18 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMadison42 min
Apr 22, 10:20 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANChicot40 min
Apr 22, 10:22 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANCatahoula53 min
Apr 22, 10:36 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANTensas54 min
Apr 22, 10:39 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANIssaquena51 min
Apr 22, 10:51 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSharkey, Washington39 min
Apr 22, 11:10 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANClaiborne50 min
Apr 22, 11:12 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANYazoo48 min
Apr 22, 11:32 AM CDTTornado WarningJANHolmes, Yazoo43 min
Apr 22, 12:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANRankin52 min
Apr 22, 12:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANScott43 min
Apr 22, 12:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANNewton34 min
Apr 22, 1:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSmith40 min
Apr 22, 2:02 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXGreene, Hale, Marengo, Sumter48 min
Apr 22, 2:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBWayne63 min
Apr 22, 2:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANClaiborne50 min
Apr 22, 2:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANCopiah53 min

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 12:00Z, 1.8 hours before the alert went out and 52 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1997-04-22Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1284 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1997-04-22The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 62 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
1284 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-35 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
525 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
62 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
259 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

125 
WWUS9 KMKC 221320
SEL8  
MKC WW 221320
LAZ000-MSZ000-222000-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 178
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
820 AM CDT TUE APR 22 1997

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR ALL OR PORTIONS OF

   NORTHEASTERN LOUISIANA                          
   CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI                        

EFFECTIVE THIS TUESDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 845 AM UNTIL 300
PM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 3/4 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND
GUSTS TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE
AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 75 STATUTE MILES EITHER SIDE OF
A LINE FROM 15 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MONROE LOUISIANA TO 45 MILES EAST
OF LAUREL MISSISSIPPI.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 177

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

DISCUSSION...CONVECTIVE CLUSTER CONTINUES MOVING ALONG SURFACE
BOUNDARY INTO UNSTABLE AIR WHERE CAPES FROM 1500 TO 2500 J/KG. 
BACKING LOW LEVEL FLOW WITH INCREASING WESTERLY WINDS ALOFT WILL
RESULT IN FAVORABLE SHEAR FOR SUPERCELLS.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 3/4 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
450.  MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27035.


...ROGASH

332,0915 324,0880 303,0884 311,0922

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 22, 11:15 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCLamar, Pickens6 hr
Apr 22, 1:30 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Baldwin, Bibb, Blount, Chilton, Choctaw and 34 more8 hr
Apr 22, 2:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBarbour, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee and 22 more6 hr
Apr 21, 10:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAshley, Columbia, Lafayette, Little River, Miller, Union6 hr
Apr 22, 5:00 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAshley, Bradley, Calhoun, Clark, Cleveland, Columbia and 13 more6 hr
Apr 22, 1:00 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBienville, Bossier, Caddo, Claiborne, De Soto, Natchitoches and 3 more5 hr
Apr 22, 1:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAcadia, Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline and 2 more6 hr
Apr 22, 2:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAcadia, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, Catahoula, Concordia and 24 more7 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 1997Tornado Watches in Louisiana, 1997Tornado Watches in Arkansas, 1997Every tornado watch in 1997

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.